Kuwabara Kazuma: Ferry Girl
by McMousie
Summary: Kuwabara helps Botan with a newly deceased soul.


Kuwabara Kazuma was on his way home from college when something in the sky caught his eye. He stopped in the middle of the footpath and craned his neck up to get a better look at it.

Zooming around in a loose circle was something far too large to be a bird. It was also entirely the wrong shape. In fact, it looked like…

"Botan!" Kuwabara yelled. A woman dodging around him dropped her bag in fright but Kuwabara didn't notice. He began waving his hands in the air in order to catch the ferry girl's attention, almost hitting the poor woman in the face. She hastily retrieved her bag and fled.

It was several seconds before Botan noticed the orange haired man on the street, waving and yelling her name. She flew down to the ground and hovered in front of him, her blue hair tossed about in the breeze.

"Hey, Botan, how you been?" Kuwabara asked. "It's been ages." He thought the ferry girl looked very frazzled. Her hair was coming loose from it's ponytail and her expression was harassed.

"I'm sorry, Kuwabara," she said regretfully. "It's wonderful to see you and I'd love to chat but I'm afraid I'm very busy right now. I'm looking for a lost soul."

"Can I help?" Kuwabara asked eagerly, always ready to rescue a damsel in distress. "I'm great at finding things."

Botan frowned. "I'm really not sure," she said. Then she smiled brightly. "I suppose it can't hurt though."

Kuwabara pumped his fist in the air. "Yeah! Let's go!" He started forward, only stopping when he realised Botan was not following him. He turned, his expression puzzled.

She smiled fondly at him. "Do you even know where you're going?" she asked, her tone full of suppressed laughter.

"Well…" Kuwabara scratched his head sheepishly. "Guess not," he admitted. "So, who is the soul we're looking for, anyway?"

Botan whipped out her trusty notebook and flipped through it. Several petals, a paperclip and a candy wrapper fell from between the pages as she did so. Finally she said triumphantly, "Here it is! It's a little girl named Mari. Four years old and of Japanese descent. She's been giving me so much trouble," Botan pouted. "She called me nasty names and then ran off."

"Four years old…" Kuwabara mused. "Have you tried the park?"

"Not yet," Botan said. "Do you think she's there?"

"Let's take a look," Kuwabara suggested.

"All right. I'll meet you there," Botan told him. Before he could object, she'd taken off, pink kimono flapping in the air. Kuwabara sighed. He'd been hoping to ask for a ride on her oar.

-0-

Kuwabara made his way past a pair of high school students sitting on a bench and kissing enthusiastically. A woman with a stroller was giving them a disapproving look as she went past. Kuwabara politely stepped off the path to let her pass before resuming his passage towards Botan.

The ferry girl was standing near the swings, her hands tucked into her pink kimono sleeves. Her oar was nowhere to be seen. Her attention was fixed on a little girl with dark hair in pigtails swinging idly on the swingset. She wore a lacy pink fairy dress, complete with butterfly wings.

"Hey, Botan," Kuwabara said when he reached her.

"Ah!" Botan squeaked in fear. She whirled on him. Kuwabara leapt back at the sight of the baseball bat in her hands. Where the hell had that come from? He raised his hands in an attempt to calm her.

"It's just me," he said frantically. "Sorry I scared you."

"Oh, Kuwabara!" Botan's face relaxed into a broad smile. "You shouldn't sneak up on people like that," she added in a stern voice. She waved the bat in his direction and Kuwabara took a wary step back.

"Ah, can you put away that bat now, please?" he asked.

She glanced at it, as if surprised to find that it was still there. She laughed awkwardly. "Oh, oopsie," she giggled. The bat disappeared, to where Kuwabara wasn't sure he wanted to know.

"So, is that the soul?" he asked, gesturing towards the girl on the swingset.

"Yeah, that's her," Botan said.

"Aren't you gonna go talk to her or something?" Kuwabara asked.

"Well… that didn't work before," Botan admitted. "I know! Why don't you talk to her instead?" She turned a 100 watt smile on Kuwabara and he wilted.

"It's not my job," he tried.

Botan's mouth set into a determined line. "Today," she informed him in a grave voice, "you are an honorary spirit guide. Now get cracking!"

Kuwabara gave her an incredulous look. "Did you just make me an honorary ferry girl?" he asked uncertainly. "Because that isn't very manly."

"Whatever," Botan waved her hand in the air. "That's not important. Now go talk to her. You have to convince her to come to Spirit World with me."

"Do I get a flying oar as well?" Kuwabara asked. It might be worth putting up with Urameshi's teasing if he could fly.

"No!" she snapped. She took his arm and turned him in the direction of the swingset. "Now go talk to that nice little girl," she said firmly. Kuwabara thought her smile was sinister.

Kuwabara sighed and made his way over to the little girl.

"Um, hi, there," he tried, when she looked up at him. Her eyes were chocolate brown and red-rimmed, as if she'd been crying.

"What do you want?" she demanded, her voice harsh.

Well, that wasn't a good start.

"I'm Kazuma Kuwabara," he said. "But everyone calls me Kuwabara."

"So?" the girl retorted. Her mouth was turned down in a frown.

"You're… Mari, right?" he asked.

"Did that blue-haired freak you were talking with before tell you that?" she demanded. "Just go away."

"Botan's actually really nice," Kuwabara protested. "A bit ditzy, but nice. She's trying to help you."

"She wants to take me away from my mummy and daddy," Mari told him. Her lower lip began to quiver.

Kuwabara shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans and rocked back on his heels awkwardly. "That's because you're dead," he said.

"That's what she said, too," Mari said. "I don't care. I'm not leaving."

Well, at least he didn't have to convince her she was dead.

"But the Spirit World is a really great place," he said. "There's lots of friendly people there and kids to play with."

She looked up at him and Kuwabara felt a surge of hope. She looked interested.

"The kids here won't play with me," she said. Her eyes moved to a group of children playing with a ball several meters away.

"They can't see you," Kuwabara told her. "But that isn't a problem in Spirit World because everyone is like you." From the corner of his eye he saw Botan edging towards them. She caught his eye and gave him a thumbs up.

"They have lots of toys in Spirit World," Kuwabara continued. "No one will yell at you if you don't do your chores, or if you want to go to the arcade instead of study. And there's lots of cats."

Mari was gazing up at him, intrigued. Over her shoulder, Botan made a face at him.

"I like cats," Mari said hesitantly.

"Me, too," Kuwabara said enthusiastically. "I have one named Eikichi."

"I still don't want to leave my mummy and daddy," Mari said quietly. She stared down at her lap, fingers nervously picking at the hem of her fairy dress.

"They'll join you eventually," Kuwabara told her. "They have to stay here for a little longer, but you'll see them again. And then you can show them around and they can meet all of your new friends."

Mari looked up at him. "Do I really have to go with that weird lady?" she asked.

"Yes," Kuwabara told her.

"Flying is scary," Mari said. "What if I fall?"

"You can't fall, silly," Botan said. "You're a ghost." She had finally reached them. Mari glared at her.

"Botan will hold onto you," Kuwabara assured her. "Besides, you have wings. I promise it'll be fun."

She looked between the two of them, Kuwabara's expression hopeful, and Botan's smile far too wide to be genuine. She had her fingers crossed behind her back.

"I suppose," Mari said reluctantly. "It's kind of boring here anyway, since no one can see me." She slid off the swing and turned to Botan expectantly. "Hurry up and get out that stick thing," she ordered imperiously.

"It's an oar, you little brat," Botan muttered.

"Botan," Kuwabara said warningly.

"All right, all right." She brought out her oar and sat on it, then lowered it to an appropriate height for Mari to hop on. The little girl clambered on awkwardly, wrapping her arms around Botan's waist. Botan's grimace indicated to Kuwabara that the girl's hold was tight. Mari's little legs dangled off the ground as Botan rose a short way into the air.

"Bye, mister," Mari told him. "You're much nicer than the weird lady." Botan scrunched up her face but Mari didn't see it.

"Bye, Mari," Kuwabara said. "And please try to be nice to the weird lady. She really can't help being weird."

Botan's pink eyes narrowed at him and Kuwabara gulped. "Ah, you'd better get going," he said hastily. "Wouldn't want to keep the baby waiting."

Botan kicked off from the ground, launching them into the air. Mari waved at him until they disappeared into the sky.

The honorary ferry girl sighed and turned to continue his journey home. He now had to explain to his sister why he was late. Somehow, he didn't think she would take his story well.


End file.
